1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a technique for converting thermal energy to electrical energy, and more particularly, to a heat-pipe electric-power generating device that can be disposed inside an apparatus for recycling heat energy or energy from a heat source and forming a heat electric-power generator.
2. Description of Related Art
Energy is an indispensable commodity in our daily life. In general, energy can exist in many forms, the most common forms includes heat energy, electrical energy and light energy. From the perspective of the energy, heat energy or electrical energy brings out some beneficial effects. However, some form of energy becomes waste energy and is simply discarded to the surrounding because the conversion efficiency is too low to be of much use. For example, an electronic device uses electrical energy to perform a number of operations and generates some waste heat. The waste heat is simply dissipated to the surrounding and never utilized. Furthermore, if the energy is present as light energy or heat energy but the required energy is electrical energy, an efficient energy conversion apparatus or system is required.
The most widely used conventional energy source such as petroleum is increasingly scarce and will be in short supply soon. Therefore, finding a new energy source and recycling some of the energy is an important topic. Another form of energy, which is unlimited in supply and entirely different from that provided by the petroleum industry, is the solar energy. In general, solar energy can be converted to heat energy and electrical energy.
Accordingly, collecting waste heat and converting the waste heat into useful energy is always everyone's concern in the current energy crisis. Therefore, the provision of a design capable of efficiently converting a heat source into an electrical source to meet a variety of energy applications is in the mind of most energy researchers.